Honda Brio and Brio Amaze: Twin wonders in the land of wonders

The author with Honda Cars PH president and general manager Toshio Kuwahara in Misibis Bay

The Bicol region is known for many things: the Mayon Volcano, one of the seven natural wonders of the world; spicy but delicious food such as laing and Bicol Express; the CWC Watersports Complex, which is a very popular destination for adventure tourism; Caramoan Island, where editions of the reality TV show “Survivor” were filmed; and the numerous beauty queens of late that have hailed from this exotic region.

Life is exciting here in the Bicol region, making it an apt location to launch a car that has an Italian name which means “full of life, excitement, performance and vivacity.” For seasoned motoring journalists, this seems cheesy, so we tend to approach these themed coincidences and ideas with caution.

But little did we know that driving within the Bicol region was a wonder in itself: Our 130-plus-kilometer route from Naga to Misibis Bay resort right outside the bustling Legazpi City featured a driving route truly epic, with sweeping vistas; challenging mountain roads that featured smooth, freshly paved tarmac; and, most importantly, free from any traffic.

If there is an exotic locale to unleash the Philippine motoring media to enjoy the all-new Honda Brio and Brio Amaze, this was truly it!

A quick review: A few months back, Honda gave a sneak preview of the Brio and Brio Amaze with a short drive up and down the posh Tagaytay Highlands Complex. A brand-new Mitsubishi Mirage and Toyota Wigo were on hand to give us an idea on how the competition fared against the Brio twins.

A lot of people ride on these A-segment cars. Honda lacks a diesel engine, a pickup and a seven-seater SUV/MPV, the second largest and most profitable mass-market segment in the country. By offering the Brio, Honda aims to strengthen its position in the market and steal sales—as well as ground and overall market share—from its competitors to offset the glaring hole in its lineup.

A lot of punch

The preview drive told us many positive and promising things: the Hondas pack the most punch in their segments, being the only four-cylinder, 1300-cc competitors that pack 100 horsepower and 127 Newton-meters of torque, delivered to the front wheels via an available five-speed automatic transmission.

The Brio twins weigh significantly heavier, 965 kilograms for the top-model V variant, but come loaded with goodies. Thankfully, all variants have dual front airbags and ABS-EBD brakes, as well as ecometer indicators to measure how efficiently your driving style is.

Against the backdrop of a restive Mayon Volcano, the two Brio variants are in the best place to amaze.

Other optional extras for top-model variants are in-car SatNav/GPS, keyless entry, and optional body-kit/ducktail spoiler and foglamps. Dimensionally, the Brio is the widest in its class at 1,680 millimeters, giving it an aggressive stance; the lowest in its class at 1,485 mm, making it appear swoopy and sporty but without suffering any noticeable loss in headroom; and is 3,610 mm in length, slotting between the shorter Wigo and longer Mirage.

But it’s what you don’t see that truly sets them apart. Among their competitors, the Brio and Brio Amaze have the stiffest chassis, the sharpest suspension settings, the best steering and the best in NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness) isolation. They feel like properly designed and engineered cars that strictly adhere to Soichiro Honda’s philosophy of producing great, efficient and exciting cars to drive.

Aimed at different buyers

We flagged off at the newly opened Honda Cars CamSur-Pili dealership after a short technical briefing. Crucially, though related, both cars are aimed at different buyers: The Brio hatchback is for the young outgoing and adventurous/outdoor types, while the Brio Amaze sedan is positioned as a mini-limousine for the cost- and environmentally conscious, sophisticated buyers that demands space and refinement in a small package.

Both cars feature the prominent opposing triangle lines on the hood and doors, which help avoid making the slab-sided Brio look boring and unexciting. It’s not a looker in the truest sense of the word, but like many other great cars that look challenging, to put it delicately, the Brio truly drives head and shoulders above every other competitor in its class.

Our convoy of Honda Brio and Brio Amaze, as well as two Honda Accords, a CRV, an Odyssey and a Pilot for support vehicles quickly headed further down south. Immediately, the Brio and Brio Amaze make their presence felt and known: Interior NVH is impressively low, the A/C is powerful enough to get us to put on our jackets and space in the rear seats is massive.

We’re three in each car; our Brio hatchback was loaded with three 200-plus-pound journalists with bags but it never felt constricted. Even after three hours of spirited and nonstop driving, the Brio never failed to keep us relaxed, refreshed and excited.

Our route would see us driving on the Pacific coast side of Bicol, then through the mountain ranges of Mt. Malinao, Mt. Masaraga, Mt. Bulakawan and, of course, Mayon Volcano.

As Pili gave way to open farm roads away from the usual beaten path, our speed climbs, traffic disappears and the excitement begins. The Brio and Brio Amaze proved that with the right road, you don’t need massive oodles of power to enjoy the cars and the drive.

A firm but compliant suspension matched with sharp steering—in this case, an all-electric affair—plus very strong, well-modulated and fade-free brakes meant that we were slowly but surely taking the Brio to its limits, and was begging us to drive harder!

Sheer cornering speeds

The diminutive 14-inch Michelin tires were screaming and howling as we entered the mountain passes with massive elevation changes, which saw the Brio and Brio Amaze’s suspension completely compressing due to the sheer cornering speeds we were getting through tight and twisty corners, hairpins and even off-camber switchbacks.

The road cuts and expansion joints gave a loud thud but the Brio never lost its cool and composure. With the Vios Cup finals approaching, everyone took turns to “practice” with the Brio through these challenging roads: ditch-hooking, trail-braking and stitching successive corners into a single, flowing motion.

Coming down, even at sustained elevated speeds, the brakes never faded. We all took turns at attacking the challenging roads; even our Japanese hosts relished the drive, sneaking out the next day for another fun run of their own while we had breakfast at the beautiful Misibis Bay resort.

The Brio is expensive in its class indeed, but it is the most well-sorted, best-built, most refined and most solid-feeling vehicle in its segment, not to mention the sportiest, most entertaining and exciting to drive.

The premium they demand (price ranging from P599,000 for the Brio M/T, and P769,000 for the Brio Amaze V) are truly justified by the engineering, packaging and safety equipment included.

The Brio is more than just a “city car.” It’s the standard bearer, the class leader, the over-achiever in this segment. Everything else is second-best.